Prime Minister Narendra Modi used his famed oratory skill to stoke Bengali pride during his rare address to the members of a city-based chamber on Thursday, exhorting industrialists to bring back manufacturing glory to the state and making Calcutta the central piece of development in the eastern region.

In the 35-minute speech on the occasion of the annual day of the Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the PM invoked Swami Vivekananda and Rabindra Nath Tagore, two of the most iconic figures of the state, to drill in his pitch to build a self-reliant India by using opportunities arising from the adversities thrown up by the pandemic and build a sustainable future on the planks of people, planet and profit.

The session was attended by 8,234 members and associates of the ICC digitally with PM Modi joining in from his residence in Delhi. The meeting, aired live to all television channels, was devoid of overtly political undertones but was not unmindful of connecting with the 10 crore-plus populace of Bengal, who would exercise their franchise in less than a year to decide if Modi’s BJP can wrest power from the incumbent Trinamul Congress.

“I believe that Calcutta could become a leader. By taking inspiration from its glorious past, Calcutta can lead the development of the eastern region… we have to revive manufacturing industry in Bengal,” Modi said in his second address to industry in less than 10 days.

The Prime Minister suggested that Bengal has a lot to gain from the people-planet-profit mantra, a theme developed by the ICC last year, such as cargo movement by inland waterways or single use plastic.

Mayank Jalan, president of ICC, who shared the screen space with the PM, was thrilled. “I received calls from India and abroad. Our members are really thrilled and encouraged by the PM’s speech, who paid a lot of attention to the East and Northeast,” Jalan said.

Rudra Chatterjee, immediate past president of ICC, said he was happy that the PM picked up the chamber’s theme of people, planet and profit and tied it with the development of Bengal and the East.

However, an industrialist pointed out that while there was no dearth of vision in the speech, there was little clarity on how it would be translated on ground. “The link between vision and action is missing,” he said on the condition of anonymity.

Time will tell if the ICC address will remain just a shining example of Modi’s oration skills or have a material impact on the ground.